Highlights from the G8 Dementia summit

London
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A special summit on dementia, convened by the G8, has taken place in London. During the summit a range of initiatives have been announced aimed at tackling the disease.

The main headline from the summit, as reported by the BBC, is that the leading nations have committed to developing a cure or treatment for dementia by 2025 at the G8 Dementia Summit.

Among the projects unveiled, the U.K. based Medical Research Council (MRC) is investing $75 million to better understand how dementia affects the brain, improve early detection and improve treatments to delay progression. An extra $40 million will go to the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit to better understand the cognitive mechanisms of the brain and to use imaging techniques to identify early signs of dementia.

According to The Independent, dementia scientists have said they are confident that major breakthroughs in the hunt for effective treatments can be made within the next few years.

Also announced during the meeting was a statement by the Alzheimer's Society to spend at least $150 million on dementia research in the next decade.

Despite the spending initiatives, charity organizers and interest groups expressed concern about the level of funding. Maureen Baker, chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners, is quoted by PharmaTimes as saying that "any promise of increased funding is welcome but we are worried that even £130 million over the next 12 years will not be enough to help the rapidly increasing number of people affected by this dreadful disease".